Kirk Moderator Addresses Scottish Parliament on Slave Trade

The Moderator of the Church of Scotland General Assembly, the Rt Rev Alan McDonald, has addressed the Scottish Parliament on the "evils of slavery".

The 200th anniversary of the abolition of the Slave Trade Act this year has brought past and present forms of slavery high on church agendas this year.

In his address to the MSPs, the Moderator reflected on Scotland's contribution to the rise and fall of the African slave trade, which many Scots prospered from while others, including many churchmen, actively petitioned the British Government to end.

Looking to the future, Rev McDonald welcomed the new "creative links" that the Scottish Parliament is forging with Malawi and the way in which "we in Scotland are learning to see the world anew, through African eyes".

Rev McDonald recently returned from a two-week visit to Malawi during which time he visited the dungeons at Cape Coast where slaves were incarcerated before being shipped across the Atlantic.

"I will never forget standing at the little door in the dungeon wall known as the Point Of No Return, which the slaves knew was the last sight they would ever have of Africa as they were loaded onto the specially built ships."

Rev McDonald ended his address with an appeal to MSPs to eradicate slavery today.

"As we prepare to mark this important anniversary, let us learn from the dark times of the past, and let us resolve never to repeat the evils of slavery, whether through human trafficking, debt, or poverty."

Rev McDonald concludes his three-day visit to the Scottish Parliament today.